Oakland buries 3-year-old killed by gang violence

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Oakland said goodbye on Tuesday to a three-year-old who was killed in a gang-related shooting last week.

There were firefighters, city council members and a U.S. congresswoman among those in attendance at Carlos Nava's funeral on Tuesday.

There was a tiny white casket, white teddy bears and family members dressed in white shirts with Nava's smiling face -- a face his father will never forget.

"He was really playful," Nava's father said. "He was a fun three-year-old little kid."

Nava's family had just recently moved to the neighborhood where the little boy became the unintended target of a gang drive-by last week.

Both of Nava's parents are unemployed, but they plan to start a foundation to combat the violence in the city. They say they will use the money raised in their son's memory to do it.

"We need to stop the violence (and) gangs," Nava's father said. "Doesn't matter what you are, if you're black or Latino."

The Oakland parolee accused of being behind the wheel in the drive-by, Willie Torrence, remains in a Las Vegas jail. He could be charged today.

A parolee from Pittsburg was charged last week and is suspected of being the shooter.

Police say justice will be served, but there is still outrage over Nava's murder.

City Councilman Ignacio De La Fuente plans to introduce legislation that has been denied before: de la Fuente is calling for a gang injunction in the Fruitvale and wants to expand injunctions in other Oakland neighborhoods, along with a city-wide curfew.

"I think the mayor, and all of us, have a responsibility to implement some of these tools," De La Fuente said. "If not, all we are doing is talking."

In the meantime, a memorial on International Boulevard continues to grow for Nava in Oakland.

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crime, shooting, gang violence, oakland, child death, children, east bay news, cecilia vega

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